You are here

Fighting Obesity Through Hip-Karate

â€œItâ€™s important for parents to realize they have the ability to get their kids moving, and keeping it fun makes that much easier to do,â€? explains Mike Hope, an adolescent fitness coach and entrepreneur

[Health News]

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, childhood obesity is a serious issue and its prevalence is rapidly increasing.

The CDC reports that studies have shown substantial increases in the percentage of children that are overweight. Even in the youngest age group, two to five years old, there was an increase from five to almost 14 percent of children being overweight. Similar increases were found in children of older age groups.

The inactivity affecting so many children has parents scrambling for ways to combat it. One approach to beating the problem may be as simple as keeping it fun. Many parents have found the answer in something they’ve been doing for years – using exercise videos. Those designed for kids aim to keep them active, but ensure they have fun along the way.

“It’s important for parents to realize they have the ability to get their kids moving, and keeping it fun makes that much easier to do,” explains Mike Hope, an adolescent fitness coach and entrepreneur (http://mikehope.com). “Kids love the idea of learning how to break dance and do karate. I’ve taken that idea and turned it into something that will also help keep them healthy and fit.”

Hope is taking steps toward eliminating the obesity epidemic. He’s doing this by giving kids a chance to burn calories as they learn break dancing and martial arts through interactive videos. Such methods have become popular, as they offer a creative way to start teaching children the importance of being physically active.

“It’s like a Flintstone vitamin,” adds Hope. “Kids don’t necessarily need to know that it’s good for them. Yet parents get the satisfaction of knowing they are getting fit, having fun and building their confidence level.”

To comment or to subscribe to or advertise in New York’s leading Pan African weekly investigative newspaper, or to send us a news tip, please call (212) 481-7745 or send a note to Milton@blackstarnews.com